May 6, 2020 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Bicycling deaths drop 3% last year, compared to 6.3% jump in 2018; and Slow Streets spread across US — but not LA
The revised WorldTour calendar has been released, assuming pro cycling will return in 2020 — which is a big if right now; all three Grand Tours will take place, along with the Monuments, although the the compact calendar means the Giro and Vuelta will overlap. There will also be a women’s Paris-Roubaix on the same day as the men’s race.
According to the Daily Breeze, a man was crossing PCH in Wilmington around 5:25 Tuesday morning when he was struck by a pair of drivers.
The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was riding on Eubank Avenue at PCH when he was hit by one driver, then hit again by a second driver and knocked off his bike.
Both drivers remained at the scene.
Police report that he was apparently crossing against the light. However, there’s no word on whether there were any independent witnesses who weren’t involved in the crash at that early hour.
It’s also possible that the light may have changed as the victim was crossing the massive seven lane highway, bordered by a two lane service road.
This is at least the 18th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; it’s also just the second in the City of Los Angeles since the first of the year.
Update: My News LA reports the victim was crossing PCH headed north on Eubank Ave when he was struck by an eastbound driver, then hit again by someone traveling west on PC.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
Because the Neighborhood Bikeway Network we were promised as part of the plan — one of three bike networks that would support everything from local family rides to crosstown commuting — would already give us exactly that, in every neighborhood in the city.
Which is exactly why I started reporting on SoCal bicycling deaths a decade ago, to shine a light under the deadly rock city and state officials were hiding them under.
The magazine leads off with a hard-hitting infographic on bike deaths, including the frightening stat that California accounts for 18% of bicycling fatalities, tied with Florida.
As the nation’s most populous state, California has an explanation, but no effing excuse. Especially when state and local leaders talk about Vision Zero without doing a damn thing to actually save the lives of people, on bikes or on foot.
That’s followed by a trio of stories expounding on the subject.
That’s followed by advice on what to do if you’re hit by a driver, and how to navigate the legal and medical minefields that follow. Although the headline continues the sloppy journalistic practice of putting the blame on the vehicle, rather than the person driving it.
But it’s vital to read them if we’re ever going to change the deadly culture on our streets.
I wish them luck.
Tracking bicycling deaths is very hard, depressing work. Something the Bike League learned the hard way when they tried documenting every bicyclist killed on American roadways several years ago.
And quit after one year.
But maybe, just maybe, it will go a little easier this time, as Covid-19 continues to keep many drivers, and their killing machines, of the roads.
WTF? San Diego has approved a plan for Slow Streets promoted by bike advocates — and opposed by local business groups, who for some strange reason didn’t want people to exercise while social distancing in front of their closed shops.
A New Orleans letter writer complains about scofflaw bike riders, and wonders how they’d react if he drove the same way. Apparently forgetting that he’s behind the wheel of a big dangerous machine, and they’re not.
No bias here, either. An Edinburgh columnist says bike riders need to start obeying the law in exchange for new pop-up bike lanes. Because no one ever builds a new roadway before drivers promise to stop speeding and put their phones away, or make pedestrians pinkie swear before installing a crosswalk.
A special thanks to Los Angeles Bicycle Attorneys Josh and Paul Cohen of Cohen Law Partners for renewing their sponsorship for the coming year.
They join title sponsors Pocrass & De Los Reyes in renewing their support, despite these troubling economic times.
It’s their sponsorship that allows me to do what I do, and bring you the latest and best bike news on a daily basis.
Without their support — and yes, yours — this site would not be possible, at least in its present form.
Now saddle up, because we’ve got a lot of ground to cover.
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Let’s start in Santa Monica, where good things are happening.
And not so good.
On the plus side, David Drexler sends word that the city has taken advantage of the slow traffic during the coronavirus shutdown to install parking protected bike lanes on a short section of Broadway.
Look at this, a gift to cyclists from Santa Monica. They took advantage of the low corona traffic to redo Broadway thus far from 20th Street west a few blocks. They moved the parking away from the curb and replaced it with a very protected bike lane on both sides. These photos were a taken at 19th and Broadway. Not sure how far they will extend it. It goes from 20th to the Santa Monica food coop right now, then the old green lane picks up there.
The picture of the G on the ground is probably where they will pain green.
It makes cycling much safer in those lanes than the ones next to traffic, I feel. Hope they do more.
Advocacy group Santa Monica Spoke joins with other organizations to warn that excessive cuts to the transportation department could imperil the safety of vulnerable road users, as well as any post-pandemic economic recovery.
Santa Monica’s economy depends on a functioning transportation network that safely moves people, goods and services. Current proposed budget cuts will be destructive to transportation work, will disable basic functions, and slow our safe recovery from this pandemic. Transportation staff, infrastructure and services are classified as essential government functions* and perform vital functions that literally keep our community running safely. These cuts will damage safety and the very fabric of services and programs that we depend on living in Santa Monica…
These essential life saving functions are under threat with extreme plans to cut over half of the City Transportation and Mobility Division compared to 20-40% across other departments. While we can only imagine the stress and burden of decisions weighing on City Council, this level of cuts would severely impact basic public safety and infrastructure operation functions, wounding our city’s ability to rebound fiscally from the COVID-19 crisis. It is imperative to be strategic. We must consider the holistic dynamic relationships, dependencies and functions that contribute to safety, economic stability and regrowth. While the City suffers catastrophic shortfalls, we should not use a sledgehammer where a scalpel is needed to balance new budgets. Council needs to take time to cut costs strategically, while maintaining essential staff that would facilitate a safe and secure path to economic recovery and resilience.
As part of the cutbacks, Santa Monica plans to cut all bike, pedestrian and Vision Zero funding for the next year.
Which means those Broadway protected bike lanes may be the last we’ll see for awhile.
And the proposed cuts are more than just a scratch.
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Evidently, Vision Zero isn’t completely dead in the City of Angels.
Just badly wounded.
7th street is getting some new and exciting safety and mobility improvements. Come learn more at a virtual workshop on May 6 at 5:30 pm. Register here: https://t.co/J0AFy1URcqpic.twitter.com/oRun0D1gbJ
— LADOT Livable Streets (@LADOTlivable) May 2, 2020
And about damn time, since the existing bike lane is largely unrideable much of the time, and usually serves as nothing more than free parking in front of the Bloc shopping mall.
And the only rule governing traffic on 7th seems to be to aim for the soft, squishy people instead of the cold, hard cars.
Anyone who’s ridden for awhile can tell you it’s not always the bike rider’s fault in a situation like that; people are unpredictable, and can step out into the street without looking for someone on a bicycle.
But it’s always our obligation to ride carefully around pedestrians, because they’re the only ones more vulnerable than we are. And be prepared to stop or swerve to avoid crashing into someone.
Especially if you’re riding on a sidewalk.
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This working from home thing might just catch on after all.
Yes, May is Bike Month, even if everything has been cancelled and too many cities won’t give an inch on the streets during the coronavirus pandemic. Including Los Angeles.
When a Nova Scotia nursing home worker went to pick up her bike after having it repaired, the shop surprised her with a new bicycle to thank her for her work on the frontlines of the Covid-19 battle.
Tragic news from India, where a couple were killed in a collision along with two other people, after a kindhearted truck driver offered them a lift after riding 250 miles because they couldn’t find any other form of transportation.
San Diego’s Phillip Young has been kind enough to include me in a series of emails with Encinitas city leaders about the dangers of a new and apparently not-so-much improved protected bike lane along the coast highway through the city.
I asked him to explain just what the problem is, and what could be done to fix it.
The City of Encinitas has created a narrow Class 4 protected bikeway/cycletrack with too much going on in a confined space with no escape routes. This stretch of Coast Hyw 101 has recorded no bicycle accidents from 2016 until a week ago. The wheel stops / berms were added a week ago and now the accident count are 3 serious crashes requiring cyclists to be taken away by ambulances. The third accident was today. The Encinitas Mayor and officials ignored input for the public and experienced cyclists at multiple public meetings prior to final design.
Possible factors:
Mix flow of high and low speed cyclists
Many travel modes and stuff: bicycles, eBikes, walkers, runners, baby strollers, three wheelers, inline skates, skateboards, kids in tow by moms, old people, couples, surfboards, beach stuff
Mix of ages and abilities from world class triateletes to first time riders
Two-way traffic possible for all the above types. Only bicycles are allowed but the city design does not accommodate the others travelers elsewhere – no sidewalks.
Too narrow to accommodate the traffic as validated by 3-accidents in a week and the wheel stops / berms have only been installed for 1-week.
Northbound is higher speed due to a descending slope – the three accidents are northbound events
Signage needs improvement but that creates more road furniture to run over
The wheel stops / berms are the problem and offer no true protection from cars and create a maintenance problems because machinery can’t get in to clean and resurface the bikeway with more safety issues
The best solution would be to shift the Coast Hyw 101 roadway from 2-car lanes each way to 1-car lane each way. The old #2 car lane for each direction could be turned into a Class 1 Bikeway with K-rails for separation from vehicular traffic. The old Class 4 protected bikeway / cycletrack with wheel stops / berms could be turned into a sidewalk for non-bicycle use.
Second best solution is to add sharrows to the tarmac in the #2-car lane each way plus pole mounted signage.
These are just a few of my thoughts that come to mind. Riders with more experience may have some better ideas.
We are working to get the word out to the cycling community to be made aware of the new road hazards on the Coast Hwy 101 in Cardiff.
One more example of why bike riders should always be included in bikeway plans. Or at the very least, why they should turn the job over to an engineer who actually rides a bike.
Hopefully, Encinitas will get this fixed before there’s any more blood on the pavement.
Today’s photo was taken from the email chain; I’m not sure who should be credited.
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Today’s common theme is finding space on our streets for people, instead of just cars.
A San Diego man will muster out of the Navy today, and embark on a cross-country bike ride on Saturday to raise funds for wounded vets. Which should be interesting with half the country shut down right now.
A San Jose website offers advice on how to buy a new bike during the pandemic. Pro tip: Always get your bike from, or at least through, a local bike shop. It may cost a little more, but it will more than pay off in service down the road.
A health website comes up with a list of bike safety tips “you’ve definitely forgotten about since childhood,” none of which you’ve probably forgotten about. Any list that starts with “always wear a helmet” reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how to stay safe on a bike, anyway. A bike helmet should always be considered the last line of defense when all else fails, not the first.
Milton Keynes is full of parks. Maybe not such nice sheep in Campbell Park who appear to prefer cyclists to grass (from earlier this year) #LoveMK@scenesfromMKpic.twitter.com/wqaL7f7j0d
Thanks to Matthew Robertson for his monthly donation to help support this site, and bring you the latest bike news every morning.
On a related note, some people have asked for an alternative to PayPal or Zelle to donate to this site. Does anyone have a favorite free or low-cost online resource you can recommend?
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already.
